Exhibition win over Oilers may set tone for team's ascent

Hey there, time traveller!This article was published 17/9/2013 (1429 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It will mean diddly and squat in two weeks when the puck drops for real and the first shift to the last carries a larger and deeper meaning.

But if the Winnipeg Jets are to morph into a playoff squad for the first time in their rebirth here in River City, then developing an expectation, not a hope, of winning has to become part of the dressing-room DNA.

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

The Jets' Olli Jokinen (12) works his way around the Oilers' Denis Grebeshkov (37) in the second period Tuesday.

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

Jets Mark Scheifele (55) and Michael Frolik (67) celebrate Frolik's goal in the second period of Tuesday's pre-season NHL game.

And so while Tuesday night's 3-2 exhibition win over the Edmonton Oilers will mean zilch when the two open the regular season on Oct. 1, it does fuel the desire to change the collective thinking.

"You have to develop that mindset," said Michael Frolik, who scored one of the Jets' three goals. "What I learned in Chicago is you always have to believe. If you're going to be successful you need to believe and have the mindset you're going to give it every game.

"We are in a competition. Everybody wants to win. If you're not like that, you can't be in this room. Everybody has to be like that."

THE BIG MAN'S DEBUT

His weight will remain a secret, but the trimmer, leaner Dustin Byfuglien who suited up for his first pre-season contest Tuesday did all the things management craves from his game. He's a physically dominant difference-maker who hammered Ryan Hamilton into the end boards so hard in the first period, one of the doors swung open. He played just over 24 minutes, finished with a team-high five shots but was also on the ice for one of the late Oiler goals.

"I guess whoever was in charge of that door over there didn't quite lock it and the poor kid went through," said Byfuglien of the Hamilton hit. "He just kind of looked at me like, 'Oh, oh.'... I think he was just as shocked as I was."

KANE, SETOGUCHI AND (INSERT CENTRE'S NAME HERE)

Take an unofficial poll of Jets faithful as to who should be the second-line centre between Evander Kane and Devin Setoguchi -- Mark Scheifele or Olli Jokinen -- and we'd guess the totals would hit 90 per cent in favour of the fresh-faced kid, not the grizzled vet.

A thought, based on two pre-season games as a sampling: It might not matter who mans the middle as long as these two snipers are together. The Kane-Scheifele-Setoguchi trio was good for five points last Saturday in Belleville and while the Kane-Jokinen-Setoguchi combo was held scoreless Tuesday against the Oilers, there were some signs of chemistry.

Perhaps the critical part of the question is this: With Kane and Setoguchi's game already blending, which pivot is both the better distributor and defender?

NO. 27... WITH A BULLET?

A big discussion point in Jetville this week was ESPN's ranking of Ondrej Pavelec as the 27th best goaltender in the NHL. What we saw for about 59 minutes Tuesday was the big Czech's counterpoint. Pavelec wasn't busy, but he was steady. And then for a 23-second stretch late in the third, the Jets took their foot off the gas and the Oilers potted two behind Pavelec.

All of which, of course, hammers home Claude Noel's assertion that once the attention to detail on defence improves so, too, will Pavelec's numbers.

"We got the win and we need to have that attitude right away," said Pavelec. "We have to learn from this game, that we have to be focused all 60 minutes."

FYI

Evander Kane was limited to three shifts in the third period before leaving the game with stomach cramps.

Claude Noel said after the game more cuts/reassigning of players will happen later this week.

Anthony Peluso could get used to this -- the Jets' resident tough hombre's personal stat line included last night's game-winning goal.

THE SECOND STAR

Eric Tangradi didn't see his name appear on the scoresheet often last year, but there he was Tuesday picking up two assists. And that's partly the byproduct of all the competition for jobs.

"I don't think I've ever been in training camp and had my name written on paper anywhere... And I think it's great," he said.

History

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments.
All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.